Monday, September 20, 2010

Revisiting Old Trails

On Saturday, John and I tackled our semi-annual task of clearing the abandoned railroad line. We usually go down this trail each spring and fall to remove any fallen trees, and cut back encroaching growth. We haven't ridden the railroad line much this summer, so we knew it was in need of grooming.

In one spot on the trail there has always been a washout area. The trail had been re-routed around the washout -- last year, the washout got even bigger, so we had to cut another trail around it. We were not prepared for what we saw this time. The washout area is now HUGE! It seems to be following the trail, and expanding. At this particular spot, the trail has a pretty steep dropoff on both sides. Due to the size of the washout, the new path around it had to go down the dropoff. We had to pick a path that we could handle with our chainsaw (not a real big one) because we had to cut down trees. So now the trail goes down at a steep angle and then up again. I was curious to see how "The Girls" would handle it. We planned to ride it on Sunday. It was not an easy job doing all that clearing and re-routing the trail around the washout. It was dark as we walked back to the truck.

On Sunday we headed out to try out our newly cleared trail. When we got near our neighbors house (Terri), the horses started heading up her driveway. They decided to do this on their own -- it was really strange. So we thought, "what the heck. let's go visit her horses before we go to the railroad line." Imagine our surprise when we got to her barn, and there she was, saddling up! She said two other of our friends (Tom and Dolly) were trailering their horses to her house to go riding. So, we decidded to join them, and are SO glad we did. We had the best ride.

Here is the group -- I am usually not in front like this!!

We did not go down the railroad line. Instead, we went to a nearby farm which is owned by some really great people. They have a beautiful place, and their property has crops, and a pond/small lake, and trails. They do not have horses, but they let us ride their trails. In fact, they even clear trails for us to ride. They are really nice people. John and I had not ridden their farm in a long time -- maybe two years or so.

It was such a pretty ride, and an interesting one. Thankfully I had my camera. There is a spot on the trail where it climbs a pretty high hill overlooking a ravine with a creek flowing through it. It was such a beautiful sight (unfortunately I did not get a picture -- I was concentrating on what I was doing at the time!!).

We also rode around our other neighbors beautiful horse property. I got some pictures of some of their horses.

It was such a neat ride -- good friends, good weather, and beautiful early fall scenery. Our horses actually walked with our friends' quarter horses, so we were able to talk and enjoy each other's company. Even Divna behaved and didn't kick any of the other horses! All this fantastic behavior was even more amazing considering Terri's horse, Reba, was in estrus!

A ride like that is just good therapy, and helps make one aware of their many blessings.

About Me

John has been substitute teaching, and is studying for obtaining his teaching certification. Regina is the in-house accounts/HR manager for a machine shop. In addition to our horses, we have two cats, and five chickens. John is a first-generation American, with his parents arriving after WWII. Regina has a relative who fought in the Revolutionary War.